December 26, 1951: "The African Queen" Premieres

Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart

December 26, 1951: The African Queen premieres, based on the 1935 novel by C.S. Forester, and directed by John Huston. It stars Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn.

The film is set in August 1914, in German East Africa (now the nations of Burundi, Rwanda and Tanzania). Samuel Sayer (Robert Morley) and his sister Rose (Hepburn) are British missionaries. They are occasionally supplied by the steamboat African Queen, piloted by Charlie Allnut, not exactly a missionary's kind of guy. (He was a Cockney in the book, but Bogart didn't think he could do the accent, so the character was rewritten as a Canadian, so he was still a citizen of the British Empire.)

Charlie tells them that war has broken out (the one that would later be known as World War I), and that they should get out of German territory. They refuse, but German colonial troops burn down the village, and Samuel is killed. Charlie helps Rose bury him, and takes her upriver.

Charlie says the British are unable to attack the Germans because of the presence of a large gunboat, the Königin Luise (Queen Louise, named for the wife of King Frederick William III of Prussia), patrolling a large lake downriver. Rose comes up with a plan to convert the African Queen into a torpedo boat, and sink the Königin Luise. After first thinking that she's nuts, Charlie goes along with the plan.

The Königin Luise returns, and Charlie and Rose steam the African Queen out onto the lake in darkness, intending to set her on a collision course. A strong storm strikes, causing water to pour into the African Queen through the torpedo holes. Eventually the boat capsizes, throwing Charlie and Rose into the water. Charlie loses sight of Rose in the storm.

Charlie is captured and taken aboard the Königin Luise, where he is interrogated by German officers. Believing that Rose has drowned, he makes no attempt to defend himself against accusations of spying, and the German captain sentences him to death by hanging. Rose is brought aboard the ship just after Charlie's sentence is pronounced. The captain questions her, and Rose proudly confesses the plot to sink the Königin Luise, deciding that they have nothing to lose. The captain sentences her to be executed with Charlie, both as British spies.

Charlie asks the German captain to marry them before they are executed, as is allowed by the law of most countries. The captain agrees, and after conducting the briefest of marriage ceremonies, is about to carry out the execution when the Königin Luise is rocked by a series of explosions, quickly capsizing. The ship has struck the overturned submerged hull of the African Queen and detonated the torpedoes. The newly married couple is able to escape the sinking ship and swim to safety together.

Much of the film was shot on location in Uganda and the Belgian Congo (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo). This was unusual for that era, especially for a color film that used large, cumbersome "Three-Strip" cameras. The cast and crew endured sickness and spartan living conditions during their time on location, and Huston used his off-time to do a lot of hunting. This led to Clint Eastwood directing and starring in the thinly-disguised 1990 film White Hunter Black Heart.

Hepburn got sick. Bogart later said that he and Huston were the only members of the cast and crew who didn't, because they were drinking whiskey, not the local water. Given Bogie's well-known proclivities, I believe him.

The film was nominated for 4 Academy Awards: Bogart for Best Actor, Hepburn for Best Actress, Huston for Best Director, and Huston and James Agee for Best Screenplay. Only Bogart won. It was his only win.

The small steamboat used to depict the African Queen was contemporary to the time, built in 1912 in Britain, for service in Africa. At one time it was owned by actor Fess Parker, best known for playing Davy Crockett. The boat was restored, and is now on display in another location connected with Bogart: Key Largo, Florida.

In 1977, CBS aired a TV-movie with the same title, but as a sequel to the original film, with Warren Oates as Charlie and Mariette Hartley as Rose. The film was meant as the pilot for a series, but it was not picked up.

In 1999, Shakespeare in Love won the Academy Award for Best Picture. In that film, Judi Dench played Queen Elizabeth I. The ceremony was hosted by Whoopi Goldberg, who came out in costume as Elizabeth I, complete with whiteface makeup, and said, "I am the African Queen!"

*

December 26, 1951 was a Wednesday. Baseball was out of season. Football was in midweek. There were 3 games played in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks lost to the Milwaukee Hawks, 78-76 at the Baltimore Coliseum. This was the 1st half of a doubleheader. The Knicks had reached the NBA Finals the previous year, and would again, while the Hawks were a lousy team, and moved to St. Louis in 1955, and then to Atlanta in 1968. Nevertheless, the Hawks won this game.

* In the nightcap, the Baltimore Bullets beat the Philadelphia Warriors, 103-99 in triple overtime. So fans could pay for 48 minutes of basketball, and ended up getting 111 minutes.

* And the Fort Wayne Pistons beat the Boston Celtics, 94-86 at North Side High School in Fort Wayne, Indiana. As late as 1952, an NBA team was playing its home games in a high school gymnasium.

There were 2 games played in the NHL. The New York Rangers beat the Detroit Red Wings, 1-0 at the old Madison Square Garden. And the Montreal Canadiens beat the Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-2 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. The Boston Bruins and the Chicago Black Hawks were not scheduled.

And in English soccer, at a time when teams played back-to-back, home-and-home games on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, North London team Arsenal had beaten Hampshire team Portsmouth 4-1 the day before, but Portsmouth gained a 1-1 draw on this day, at Fratton Park.

October 30, 1974: The Rumble In the Jungle

October 30, 1974: "The Rumble in the Jungle" is held in Kinshasa, in the former colony of Belgian Congo, at this point called Zaire, and since 1997 called the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

George Foreman was the undefeated, undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the World, 40-0,  and heavily favored to defeat former champion Muhammad Ali, 44-2. Ali was talking his usual trash, but most people thought Ali would lose. Indeed, there were some who feared that Ali would be killed in the ring.

The referee was Zack Clayton, who had played in baseball's Negro Leagues, and for one of the great pre-NBA all-black teams, the New York Renaissance Five.

Ali fooled them all. People who say Ali just leaned against the ropes in his "rope-a-dope" strategy and let Foreman tire himself out with punches are fools. I've seen the tape of the fight: Ali got in a lot of punches, enough to win every round except for the 2nd and the 6th.

Foreman would later tell an interviewer that, at the end of the 6th, Ali yelled at him, "Is that all you got, George?" And Foreman had to admit, "Yup, that's about it."

Through a months-long psychological campaign, including practically the entire black population of the continent of Africa in his favor and against the equally black Foreman – he had done something similar to Joe Frazier, who was puzzled by it: "I'm darker than he is!" – Ali had gotten into Foreman's head, just as he had done to Sonny Liston, Floyd Patterson, and just about everybody else he'd ever fought.

In the 8th round, backed up against the ropes, Ali managed to turn an exhausted Foreman around, toss a few jabs, and knock him on his can. Foreman tried to get up, but he ran out of time, and Ali was the winner by a knockout.

When David Frost went to interview him for the BBC after the fight, he pointed at the camera and said, "Is this thing on? I told you all that I was the greatest of all time when I beat Sonny Liston! I am still the greatest of all time! Never again doubt me! Never again make me an underdog until I'm about 50 years old!"

He was off a bit, as he probably should have quit at 36, after losing the title to Leon Spinks and then regaining it from him. But, by far more than his boxing prowess, by the force of his personality, and by the example he set as a man of (at least, in America) a minority race and a minority religion, making him, somewhat contradictorily, the champion of the underdog, he proved that he really was The Greatest... Of All Tiiiiiiiime!

He still is. He appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated 40 times, more than any person before him, including its 1974 Sportsman of the Year issue. Only Michael Jordan, with 50 covers, has surpassed him as of October 30, 2022. No, not Tom Brady, not LeBron James, not even Tiger Woods. And "The Dreaded SI Cover Jinx" never seemed to affect him, until his 1980 comeback attempt against Larry Holmes. Given every factor that was against Ali, it's hard to say the jinx mattered.

Built in 1952 under Belgian rule as the Stade Roi Baudouin, the site of the fight was renamed Stade du 20 Mai (for May 20, the anniversary of the founding of Zaire's ruling party) in 1967, and Stade Tata Raphaël (Father Raphael Stadium) in 1997, after the death of dictator Mobutu Sese Seko.

*

October 30, 1974 was a Wednesday. The baseball season had been over for 2 weeks, as the Oakland Athletics had beaten the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series. And it was the middle of the wee, so there were no NFL games played.

But there were 7 games played in the NBA that night:

* The New York Knicks lost to the Washington Bullets, 94-86 at the Capital Centre in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland. Walt Frazier scored 24 points, but it wasn't enough for the Knickerbockers.

* The Chicago Bulls beat the Boston Celtics, 105-104 at the Boston Garden.

* The Phoenix Suns beat the Philadelphia 76ers, 104-99 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.

* The Atlanta Hawks beat the Detroit Pistons, 104-96 at Cobo Hall in Detroit.

* The Houston Rockets beat the New Orleans Jazz, 113-100 at the Municipal Auditorium in New Orleans.

* The Kansas City-Omaha Kings beat the Milwaukee Bucks, 99-97 at the Kemper Arena in Kansas City.

* And the Seattle SuperSonics beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 117-97 at the Seattle Center Coliseum.

There were also 5 games played that night in the American Basketball Association:

* The New York Nets beat the Utah Stars, 95-91 at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City. Julius "Dr. J" Erving scored 36 for the Nets.

* The Virginia Squires beat the Indiana Pacers, 114-111 at the Scope in Norfolk, Virginia.

* The Kentucky Colonels beat the San Diego Conquistadors, 97-94 at Freedom Hall in Louisville.

* The Denver Nuggets beat the Memphis Sounds, 105-95 at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis.

* And the San Antonio Spurs beat the Spirits of St. Louis, 135-98 at the HemisFair Arena in San Antonio.

There were 4 games played in the NHL that night:

* The New York Rangers and the New York Islanders played to a tie, 1-1 at Madison Square Garden. 

* The Chicago Black Hawks and the Montreal Canadiens played to a tie, 4-4 at the Montreal Forum.

* The Atlanta Flames beat the California Golden Seals, 4-1 at The Omni in Atlanta.

* The Boston Bruins and the Minnesota North Stars played to a tie, 3-3 at the Metropolitan Sports Center in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota.

And there were 4 games played in the World Hockey Association:

* The New England Whalers beat the Toronto Toros, 5-2 at the Eastern States Coliseum, a.k.a. the Big E Coliseum, in Springfield, Massachusetts.

* The Houston Aeros beat the Chicago Cougars, 1-0 at the Sam Houston Coliseum in Houston.

* The Winnipeg Jets beat the Phoenix Roadrunners, 6-5 in overtime at the Winnipeg Arena.

* And the Vancouver Blazers beat the Edmonton Oilers, 8-6 at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver. 

September 18, 1961: Dag Hammarskjöld Is Killed

September 18, 1961: Dag Hammarskjöld (HAM-ar-SHOLD), Secretary General of the United Nations, is killed in a plane crash near Ndola, Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia). The native of Uppsala, Sweden was 56 years old, had held his post since 1953, and was trying to negotiate a cease-fire in the Congo crisis. There were 15 other people on the DC-6 who died with him. He became the 1st person to receive a posthumous Nobel Peace Prize.

President John F. Kennedy called him "the greatest statesman of our age." Former President Harry S Truman was sure that the plane had been shot down, although he didn't say by whom. The CIA thought the KGB did it, since a cease-fire would be to the Soviet Union’s disadvantage. An investigation suggested pilot error.

A new junior high school had just opened in East Brunswick, New Jersey, and was named for him. I attended this school from September 1981 to June 1984. A large portrait of him hung on the wall in the lobby, between the school offices and the combination cafeteria/auditorium, placed so that he was facing both the front entrance and the library. It is now a Middle School, with the original building torn down and replaced with a new one in 2011. There is also a middle school named for him in Wallingford, Connecticut; and a high school named for him in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada.

I did not enjoy my time at Hammarskjold JHS, for multiple reasons that I won't get into here. But I'm still proud to have attended a school named for him.

*

September 18, 1961 was a Monday. Sopranos star James Gandolfini was born.

The NBA and the NHL were several weeks away from starting new seasons. The NFL and the AFL were underway, but there was no Monday Night Football at the time. There were Major League Baseball games played, but only 3:

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 8-6 at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. Bob Gibson took the loss against the defending World Champions. In relief of Gibson, Lindy McDaniel gave up a home run to Dick Stuart, the powerful but poor-fielding 1st baseman who would one day be known as "Dr. Strangeglove." Stuart and Dick Groat each had 3 hits. Roberto Clemente did not play. Gene Oliver and Carl Warwick homered for the Cards. Stan Musial went 1-for-3.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 5-3 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Don Cardwell went the distance for the Cubbies, while Ed Bouchee got 3 hits. Ernie Banks went 0-for-4.

* And the San Francisco Giants beat the Milwaukee Braves, 3-2 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Orlando Cepeda homered for the Jints. Willie Mays went 1-for-4. Hank Aaron did the same for the Braves, and Joe Torre went 1-for-3 with an RBI.

June 30, 1960: The No-Longer Belgian Congo Leads the Year of Africa

President Patrice Lumumba stands at center

June 30, 1960: The Republic of the Congo declares its independence from the Kingdom of Belgium. No longer will it be "The Belgian Congo."

It had to be called that, because France also had a colony it called "Congo." That one gained its independence on August 15. It had been nicknamed, for its capital, "Congo-Brazzaville," as opposed to formerly Belgian "Congo-Kinshasa." The name "Congo" originally referred to the river in both of those nations in West Africa, or to the Basin thereof.

These nations gained their independence from France in 1960, unless otherwise mentioned: Cameroon kicked off "The Year of Africa" by declaring independence on January 1, Togo on April 27, Mali on June 20, Madagascar on June 26, and Somalia from Italy on July 1. In addition, on April 27, Ghana left the British Commonwealth, and became a Republic.

And then, in August, 9 more nations gained their independence from France: Dahomey on the 1st, Niger (not to be confused with Nigeria) on the 3rd, Upper Volta on the 5th, the Ivory Coast (they prefer their French name, Côte d'Ivoire) on the 7th, Chad on the 11th, the Central African Republic on the 13th, France's Congo on the 15th, and Gabon on the 17th. And on the 20th, Senegal separated from the Mali Federation, and became independent. Nigeria gained independence from Britain on October 1, and, closing it out, Mauritania from France on November 28.

Dahomey became Benin in 1975, and Upper Volta became Burkina Faso in 1984. The former Belgian Congo/Congo-Kinshasa became Zaire in 1971, and "The Democratic Republic of the Congo" in 1997.

*

June 30, 1960 was a Thursday. These baseball games were played that day:

* The New York Yankees beat the Kansas City Athletics, 10-3 at Yankee Stadium. Ralph Terry, not yet the Yankee World Series hero of 1962, went the distance for the win; while Don Larsen, the Yankee World Series hero of 1956, didn't get out of the 3rd inning for the A's. Bill "Moose" Skowron hit 2 home runs, and the Yankees also got home runs from Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris and Tony Kubek. Yogi Berra did not play.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Detroit Tigers, 11-7 at Fenway Park in Boston. Ted Williams hit his 505th career home run. Al Kaline went 1-for-4. Rocky Colavito went 2-for-4 with 2 home runs and 5 RBIs.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 10-6 at Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. The Brooklyn "Boys of Summer" were pretty much done: Duke Snider did not play, and Gil Hodges did so only as a pinch-hitter, and did not reach base.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Cleveland Indians, 9-1 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Brooks Robinson went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Washington Senators, 4-2 at Griffith Stadium in Washington. Joe Ginsberg doubled home the winning run in the top of the 10th inning.

* A doubleheader was split at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. The San Francisco Giants won the opener, 11-0. Jack Sanford pitched a 3-hit shutout. The Pittsburgh Pirates won the nightcap, 11-6. Dick Stuart, already known as a bad fielder but not yet with the nicknames Dr. Strangeglove or Stonefingers, went 4-for-5 with 3 home runs and 7 RBIs.

Over the 2 games, Willie Mays went 6-for-9 with a home run in each game, a walk, and 5 RBIs; Willie McCovey went 3-for-5 with a walk (only appearing as a pinch-hitter in the nightcap, but getting a hit); and Roberto Clemente went 1-for-6 with 2 walks and an RBI.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Milwaukee Braves, 11-5 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Ernie Banks went 3-for-6 with a home run and 3 RBIs. Hank Aaron went 1-for-2 with 2 walks and an RBI.

* And the Cincinnati Reds and the St. Louis Cardinals were not scheduled.

May 16, 1997: The Fall of Zaire

May 16, 1997: After 32 years as President of Zaire, the largest country by area in Africa, Mobutu Sese Seko knows that he is losing the First Congo War, and flees to exile in Morocco. Already suffering from prostate cancer, he dies within 5 months, at the age of 68.

Called "the archetypal African dictator," the former Joseph Mobutu overthrew the elected government of the Congo (formerly the Belgian Congo) in 1965, and, like so many dictators in so many lands, established a one-party state, a cult of personality, and a kleptocracy.

In America, he is best known for staging the 1974 Heavyweight Championship fight in which Muhammad Ali regained the title by knocking out George Foreman, "The Rumble in the Jungle." Mobutu could do it because he had made the country rich -- on the surface. By 1991, it had all collapsed, and his overthrow became a matter of when, not if.

Four days later, opposition leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila arrived in the capital, Kinshasa -- the world's most populous French-speaking city -- and proclaimed the Democratic Republic of the Congo, ironically bringing back the old Belgian name, letting the name "Zaire" die with its founder and sole ruler. But he was no better, and ruled for less than 4 years before being assassinated.

His son, Joseph Kabila, became President, and for 18 years, including twice being democratically elected, kept things stable, and stepped aside of his own accord, having established democracy there.

*

May 16, 1997 was a Friday. Football was out of season. There was 1 game in the NBA Playoffs: The Miami Heat beat the New York Knicks, 95-90 at Madison Square Garden.

There was 1 game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs: The Philadelphia Flyers beat the New York Rangers, 3-1 at the CoreStates Center (now the Xfinity Mobile Arena) in Philadelphia.

And these Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Texas Rangers, 6-0 at The Ballpark (now Choctaw Stadium) in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. Julio Santana allowed 4 hits over 6 1/3rd innings, and Danny Patterson finished the 4-hit shutout, outpitching David Wells. The Rangers got home runs from Will Clark, Rusty Greer and Damon Buford. Mariano Duncan got 2 of the Yankees' 4 hits.

* The New York Mets lost to the Colorado Rockies, 2-1 at Shea Stadium. The Mets blew a 1-0 lead in the top of the 8th inning, when Larry Walker hit a home run.

* The Montreal Expos beat the San Francisco Giants, 14-13 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal. Barry Bonds, not yet believed to be using steroids, hit a home run for the Giants.

* The Houston Astros beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 12-7 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 1-0 at Turner Field (now Center Parc Stadium) in Atlanta. Andruw Jones singled Michael Tucker home with the winning run in the bottom of the 13th inning.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Cleveland Indians, 5-2 at the SkyDome (now the Rogers Centre) in Toronto.

* The Florida Marlins beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 3-1 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-2 at Cinergy Field (formerly Riverfront Stadium) in Cincinnati.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the San Diego Padres, 16-7 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Boston Red Sox, 11-5 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Kansas City Royals, 10-2 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.

* The Anaheim Angels beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 5-1 at Edison International Field of Anaheim (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). That season, the Angels had Eddie Murray, who went 0-for-4, and Rickey Henderson, who did not play.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Oakland Athletics, 6-2 at the Oakland Coliseum (then named the Network Associates Coliseum).

* And the Baltimore Orioles beat the Seattle Mariners, 6-3 at the Kingdome in Seattle. Cal Ripken Jr. went 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. Ken Griffey Jr. went 0-for-4.

May 11, 2014: The Stade Tata Raphaël Disaster

May 11, 2014: A stampede occurs during a soccer game at the Stade Tata Raphaël in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Several people are killed, with different accounts citing 15 and 18 deaths.

The setting was a match between AS Vita Club, the home team, and TP Mazembe of Lubumbashi. They are the 2 most successful teams in the country: Mazembe have won 19 league titles, Vita Club 15. It is a rivalry, and, during the game, objects were thrown onto the pitch. The referee chose to delay play, and the police launched tear gas canisters into the stands, causing the stampede.

As with the Heysel disaster in Belgium, during the 1985 European Cup Final, it has been alleged that a rush of people into a wall caused the wall to collapse, raising the death toll.

Built in 1952 under Belgian rule as the Stade Roi Baudouin, for the King of Belgium, the stadium was renamed Stade du 20 Mai (for May 20, the anniversary of the founding of Zaire's ruling party) in 1967, and Stade Tata Raphaël (Father Raphael Stadium) in 1997, after the death of dictator Mobutu Sese Seko. Raphaël Marie Joseph de la Kethulle de Ryhove was a Belgian priest who got the stadium, and a previous one on the site, built.

The stadium was, and still is, best known as the site of "The Rumble in the Jungle," the fight were Muhammad Ali took the Heavyweight Championship of the World back from George Foreman in 1974.

*

May 11, 2014 was a Sunday. In English soccer, this was the final day of the Premier League season. Manchester City beat East London team West Ham United, 2-0 at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, to clinch the Premier League title. They won by 2 points over Liverpool, who needed a win and an Man City loss. Liverpool got their win, 2-1 over Newcastle United at Anfield in Liverpool, but Man City did not cooperate.

The team I support, North London's Arsenal, beat Norwich City, 2-0 at Carrow Road in Norwich, Norfolk. They finished 4th. Six days later, they beat Hull City at Wembley Stadium in West London, to win the FA Cup.

There were 2 games played in the NBA Playoffs. The Indiana Pacers beat the Washington Wizards, 95-92 at the Verizon Center (now the Capital One Arena) in Washington Paul George scored 39 points for the Pacers. And the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Oklahoma City Thunder, 101-99 at the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles. Kevin Durant scored 40 in defeat for the Thunder.

There were also 2 games played in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The New York Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins, 3-1 at Madison Square Garden. And the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Minnesota Wild, 2-1 at the United Center in Chicago.

And these Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Milwaukee Brewers, 6-5 at Miller Park (now American Family Field) in Milwaukee. The Yankees tied the game in the 9th inning on a home run by Mark Teixeira, but reliever Adam Warren blew it in the bottom of the 9th, allowing a double to Rickie Weeks, throwing a wild pitch to get Weeks to 3rd base, and a single to former Yankee Mark Reynolds. Derek Jeter, in his final season, went 1-for-5.

* The New York Mets beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 5-4 at Citi Field. Rubén Tejada won it by singling Chris Young home in the bottom of the 11th inning.

* The Houston Astros beat the Baltimore Orioles, 5-2 at Camden Yards in Baltimore.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Chicago Cubs, 5-2 at Turner Field (now Center Parc Stadium) in Atlanta.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Tampa Bay Rays, 6-5 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.

* The Los Angeles Angels beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 9-3 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 6-5 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Colorado Rockies, 4-1 at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Detroit Tigers, 4-3 at Comerica Park in Detroit.

* The Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Chicago White Sox, 5-1 at U.S. Cellular Field (now Rate Field) in Chicago.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Texas Rangers, 5-2 at Globe Life Park (now Choctaw Stadium) in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Miami Marlins, 5-4 at Petco Park in San Diego.

* The San Francisco Giants beat their arch-rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers, 7-4 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Cliché Alert: Walks can kill you, especially the leadoff variety. Dodger reliever Kenley Jansen began the top of the 10th inning by walking Ángel Pagán. He then allowed a single to Hunter Pence, and threw a wild pitch. Buster Posey was intentionally walked. Jansen allowed an RBI single to Pablo Sandoval. He struck Brandon Hicks out, but allowed an RBI single to Héctor Sánchez. J.P. Howell was brought in to relieve, and he got Gregor Blanco to fly out, but, with Mike Morse at bat, threw a wild pitch that scored Posey.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Washington Nationals, 9-1 at the Oakland Coliseum (then named the O.co Coliseum).

* And the Kansas City Royals beat the Seattle Mariners, 9-7 at Safeco Field (now T-Mobile Park) in Seattle.

March 17, 2012: The Fabrice Muamba Game

March 17, 2012: One of the scariest moments in the history of sports occurs, leaving fans around the world on edge for hours. It was one of the earliest such moments spread worldwide by social media.

Fabrice Ndala Muamba was born on April 6, 1988 in Kinshasa, Zaire -- now the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In 1994, the family fled the civil war-torn country and moved to England. In 2005, Fabrice signed to play for North London soccer team Arsenal as a midfielder. But, with the team having a surplus of midfielders, he made only 2 first-team appearances, and was sent on loan to Birmingham City in 2006, and they took him on full-time in 2007. In 2008, they sold him to Manchester-area team Bolton Wanderers. In 2009-10, he was named the club's Player of the Year.

On March 17, 2012, Bolton were playing an FA Cup Quarterfinal against Tottenham Hotspur, at White Hart Lane, the North London home of "Spurs." The game was level, 1-1 in the 41st minute, when Muamba suffered a cardiac arrest and collapsed on the pitch.

Referee Howard Webb stopped the match, and medical personnel surrounded Muamba, including Dr. Andrew Deaner, a cardiologist attending the game as a fan. At first, the stands were nearly silent, with a low murmur from the fans, as most were not sure about what had happened, as the attendees to Muamba's condition blocked their view of him.

Within 4 minutes, the home fans began chanting his name, a rare tribute from Spurs fans to any opponent: "FAB-rice Mu-AM-ba!" This was a traditional one-minute tribute, and the alternating of near-silence and the chant, minute-by-minute, made for compelling TV viewing.

Finally, with Bolton manager Owen Coyle and Captain Kevin Davies riding with him, Muamba was taken by ambulance to the London Chest Hospital. It was estimated that he received cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for 45 minutes before his heart resumed beating on its own.

Because it seemed like he had died on worldwide television, and then because he'd been saved by the emergency medical technicians (EMTs) and the doctors after all, the whole world came together through social media in support of someone most of them had never heard of before -- a black immigrant from Africa to a mostly-white country, no less.

Webb finally ordered the match abandoned. The game was made up on March 27, with Tottenham winning, 3-1. They lost the Semifinal to Chelsea.

Bolton asked the Premier League to postpone their next game, at home to Birmingham team Aston Villa, set for 3 days later. The League contacted Villa management, which graciously raised no objection, and the postponement was made.

By March 19, Muamba's heart was beating without medication. He was released from the hospital on April 16, with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD). Advised by his doctors to retire from playing, Muamba became a TV analyst for his sport. As of 2022, he is a coach in Bolton's academy. He has only played once since, in 2015, in a testimonial match for a friend, Ian Goodison.

*

March 17, 2012 was a Saturday. Baseball was in Spring Training. American-style football was out of season. There were 8 games in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks beat the Indiana Pacers, 102-88 at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse (now the Gainbridge Fieldhouse) in Indianapolis.

* The New Jersey Nets lost to the New Orleans Hornets, 102-94 at the Prudential Center in Newark.

* The Charlotte Bobcats beat the Toronto Raptors, 107-103 at the Time Warner Cable Arena (now the Spectrum Center) in Charlotte.

* The Dallas Mavericks beat the San Antonio Spurs, 106-99 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

* The Chicago Bulls beat the Philadelphia 76ers, 89-80 at the United Center in Chicago.

* The Denver Nuggets beat the Boston Celtics, 98-91 at the Pepsi Center (now the Ball Arena) in Denver.

* The Utah Jazz beat the Golden State Warriors, 99-92 in overtime at the EnergySolutions Arena (as the Delta Center was then known) in Salt Lake City, Utah.

* And the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Houston Rockets, 95-91 at the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles.

And there were 11 games in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers lost to the Colorado Avalanche, 3-1 at Madison Square Garden.

* The New York Islanders bear the Montreal Canadiens, 3-2 in a shootout at the Bell Centre in Montreal.

* The New Jersey Devils lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins, 5-2 at the Prudential Center in Newark. Yes, it hosted the Devils and the Nets on the same day. A month later, that would no longer be a problem, as the Nets finished their regular season, missed the Playoffs, and moved to Brooklyn.

* The Boston Bruins beat the Philadelphia Flyers, 3-2 in a shootout at the TD Garden in Boston.

* The St. Louis Blues beat the Tampa Bay Lightning, 3-1 at the Tampa Bay Times Forum (now the Benchmark International Arena) in Tampa.

* The Florida Panthers beat the Buffalo Sabres, 3-2 at the BankAtlantic Center (now the Amerant Bank Arena) in the Miami suburb of Sunrise, Florida.

* The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Ottawa Senators, 3-1 at Scotiabank Place (now the Canadian Tire Centre) in Ottawa.

* The Carolina Hurricanes beat the Minnesota Wild, 5-3 at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota.

* The San Jose Sharks beat the Detroit Red Wings, 3-2 at the HP Pavilion at San Jose (now the SAP Center). Martin Havlát scored the winning goal with 1:37 left in overtime.

* The Los Angeles Kings beat the Nashville Predators, 4-2 at the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles.

* The Vancouver Canucks beat the Columbus Blue Jackets, 4-3 at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver.

* And the Chicago Blackhawks, the Dallas Stars, the Calgary Flames, the Washington Capitals, the Edmonton Oilers, the Arizona Coyotes, the Anaheim Ducks and the Winnipeg Jets were not scheduled.

January 17, 1961: The Execution of Patrice Lumumba

January 17, 1961: Patrice Émery Lumumba is executed by firing squad. He was only 35 years old. This was the same day that outgoing President Dwight D. Eisenhower delivered his televised Farewell Address, for which I have a separate entry.

Lumumba was born on July 2, 1925, with the name Élias Okit'Asombo, in Katako-Kombe, in what was then the Belgian Congo. In 1885, King Leopold II of Belgium created the Congo Free State, exploiting the mineral wealth of the land, killing millions of natives, and torturing millions of others.

In 1908, under pressure from the other European powers, Leopold took official control, and "the Belgian Congo" was born. He died the next year, but the situation was hardly improved his nephew and successor, King Albert I, based as it was on the "colonial trinity": Serving the interests of the Belgian state, "Christian" missionaries, and the corporations taking the resources out of a vast land of 9 million people for a small but dominating nation of 7 million.

The young man who would later take the name Patrice Lumumba worked as a beer salesman and a postal clerk, but loved French writers, particularly those who leaned toward the Enlightenment, especially Molière, Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and Victor Hugo. They inspired him to write poetry, much of it with anti-imperialist and anti-colonialist themes. He married Pauline Opangu, and had 4 children. In 1956, he studied in Belgium, and again worked as a postal clerk. But he was convicted of embezzling from the post office, and sentenced to a year in prison.

Released in 1957, he founded and led the Congolese National Movement (Mouvement National Congolais, or MNC) in 1958. Like so many other revolutionary leaders, he became popular because of his charismatic public speaking. He was imprisoned again in October 1959 for inciting a riot (he hadn't), but was released early in an effort to calm things down.

On May 25, 1960, the MNC won the election for a provisional government, and independence was declared by the Republic of the Congo on June 30, 1960, with Lumumba as Prime Minister. King Baudouin of Belgium was on hand in the capital of Kinshasa, to give his assent to what had been a mostly peaceful process.

But Lumumba didn't have control of the new country's army, which was aided by the Belgian government, and what became known as the Congo Crisis broke out. Colonel Joseph Mobutu launched a coup, and he was arrested on December 1. By January 13, 1961, even the soldiers at the prison where he was held were divided, and the decision was made to execute him and the others with him. It was done on the night of January 17.

His death was mere rumor for a while, and some tried to convince the country that it was angry villagers who killed him during an escape attempt. The official announcement wasn't made until February 13, nearly a month later. In London, there was a march from Trafalgar Square to the Belgian embassy, and the protesters clashed with the police. In Belgrade, Yugoslavia, the Belgian embassy was ransacked. In New York, there was a violent demonstration outside the United Nations Building.

In 2001, 40 years after the execution, a report was issued stating that CIA Director Allen Dulles, believing that Lumumba was a Communist -- something he had publicly denied -- wanted him eliminated, but that the agent in charge of killing him was unable to pull off his early attempts. For this reason, the report alleged, the Mobutu plot feared that incoming Administration of John F. Kennedy might call off efforts to get rid of Lumumba, and so they had to act quickly. The report also alleged that JFK wanted Lumumba freed, but not returned to power.

Lumumba has been celebrated in literature and music. Malcolm X -- also born in 1925, and also murdered before turning 40 -- called him "the greatest black man who ever walked the African continent." Muhammad Ali cited the murders of both Patrice Lumumba and, in Mississippi in 1955, 14-year-old Emmett Till as having a profound effect on his mindset.

Mobutu later gave himself the more African-sounding name to Mobutu Sese Seko, and publicized the country he renamed Zaire in 1971 as being the richest in Africa, its people benefiting from the great natural resources that had once been plundered by Belgium. He even convinced Ali and then-Heavyweight Champion George Foreman to have their fight for the title there in 1974, which Ali won. 

But as time went by, it became clear to the outside world that the people as a whole were not benefiting: Only Mobutu and his supporters were. He was governing in the style of an American big-city "political boss," except that, if you didn't support him, instead of refusing to plow the snow off your streets, fixing your potholes and pick up your garbage before doing those things for the people who did vote for him, he engaged in arrests, torture and extrajudicial killings. He only fell in 1997 because his health began to fail. He fled the country, and died soon thereafter.

Today, "the Democratic Republic of the Congo" is recovering from a long post-Mobutu civil war. The 108 million people living there had a free election in 2018. At 17 million people, the capital of Kinshasa is the largest French-speaking city in the world.

Pauline Opango, Lumumba's wife, never remarried, claiming she was unable to "find someone else of the same quality." She lived until 2014. They had 4 children, who are still fighting to have whatever physical remains of him still intact transferred back to them for a proper burial. As of January 17, 2022, all that they have been granted are two teeth that had been kept as macabre trophies.

*

January 17, 1961 was a Tuesday. There were no scores on the day: Baseball and football were out of season, and no games were scheduled for the NBA or the NHL.

I could cite one notable college basketball game played on the day: The University of Cincinnati beat Pittsburgh-based Duquesne University, 64-53, at the Armory Fieldhouse in Cincinnati. UC went on to win the National Championship that season, defeating defending Champion Ohio State.